Jan. 24, 2014

Jayru Campbell led Cass Tech to Division 1 state championships as a freshman and sophomore. He committed to MSU in August, turning down scholarship offers from Alabama, Notre Dame and Wisconsin, among others. He is rated as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com. / Diane Weiss/Detroit Free Press

Written by

Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

The quarterback of the Detroit Cass Tech High School football team has been arrested in connection with an attack on a security guard.

Jayru Campbell was arrested Wednesday by the Detroit Public Schools Police Department because of an incident that occurred inside Cass Tech at dismissal time. But in a departure from earlier DPS statements, district spokeswoman Michelle Zdrodowski said this afternoon that Campbell has not been charged, describing the earlier statements as a misunderstanding on the district’s part.

In an e-mail this afternoon, Maria Miller, a spokeswoman for the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office, said her office has now received paperwork on the case, but she cautioned against making any assumptions.

“It would be premature to indicate what if any charges (we) will issue until we have reviewed the paperwork and a formal decision has been made,” Miller wrote in the e-mail.

Dennis Niemiec, a spokesman for the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office, said he had no record of Campbell ever being in Wayne County Jail. He is being held at a detention center on Mound Road in Detroit.

Campbell, a junior, verbally committed to play college football at Michigan State, but commitments are nonbinding until national letters of intent are signed in February 2015. Per NCAA rules, college coaches are not allowed to comment publicly on unsigned recruits.

Campbell committed to MSU in August, turning down scholarship offers from Alabama, Notre Dame and Wisconsin, among others. He is rated as a four-star recruit by rivals.com.

The alleged assault marks the second incident in recent months involving Campbell, who was suspended from school and for the first game of the 2014 season for throwing a punch after Cass Tech’s state semifinal loss to Novi Detroit Catholic Central in November.

In a video of the Wednesday incident posted on YouTube, a person believed to be Campbell can be seen slamming a security guard to the ground before he is grabbed by other security guards.

(Page 2 of 2)

It’s unclear what prompted the incident. DPS Assistant Superintendent Steve Wasko said that will be part of the investigation.

In addition, Campbell could face penalties for violating the DPS code of conduct. Wasko declined to describe potential penalties.

“That’s a process that really has to take its time and go through all the hearings and the investigation,” Wasko said.

Alvin Ward, director of athletics for DPS who suspended Campbell for the punch, declined to comment today.

“This incident is currently being investigated by the district, as well as local law enforcement,” he said. “We have no further comments at this point.”

The security guard was treated at a clinic Wednesday and then went home, he said. It’s unclear whether he was injured. He works for Securitas, Wasko said, a firm that contracts with DPS to provide security services at schools.

Wasko said any decision on Campbell’s football career at DPS will follow the investigation.

Campbell led Cass to Division 1 state championships as a freshman and sophomore.

A new angle of the incident with the security guard emerged Thursday night. Watch it here.